Wade Payne / Associated Press
Matthew Stafford’s 12-season career with the Detroit Lions has come to an end after the team exchanged 2009 No. 1 overall pick for the Los Angeles Rams for quarterback Jared Goff, two future first-round picks and a third-round selection, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Saturday.
It’s a new era in Detroit, with General Manager Brad Holmes taking over the front office and head coach Dan Campbell patrolling the sidelines.
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported on Jan. 23 that Stafford and the Lions “open and healthy discussions “after the close of the 2020 season, and both parties agreed that the time was right to part ways mutually.
As regards Stafford, a new home where he’s better positioned to compete for a Super Bowl at this stage in his career, is probably the best move instead of participating in a remodel.
The 32-year-old is now heading to Los Angeles after completing 64.2 percent of his passes for 26 touchdowns, 10 interceptions and 4,084 yards last year. He is also a year away from amassing a career-high 8.6 yards per pass attempt.
Stafford started for the Lions from week 1 of the 2009 season. While the team hasn’t had much success outside of three playoff appearances, he has done well as the Lions quarterback, with 62.6 percent of his passes for 282 touchdowns and 144 tips.
Additionally, the Georgia product has done an excellent job of forming reports with a varying cast of top receivers over the past few years. A Calvin Johnson-dominated core gave way to a group led by Golden Tate and Marvin Jones Jr. before Kenny Golladay took over as the clear number 1 on the team.
Now Stafford tosses to Cooper Kupp, Robert Woods and a new set of pass catchers for the Rams when he moves to LA.
Meanwhile, Los Angeles has made a seismic change to the quarterback, putting veteran Stafford in front of Goff, who took the Rams with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft.
Goff’s numbers had fallen sharply in recent years, with his meters per attempt dropping from 8.4 in 2018 (the team’s NFC title year) to 7.2 in 2020.
On January 29, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported, “Matthew Stafford sees the Rams as a viable competitor in his trading market with the Lions. While it is unclear what the Rams can do with Jared Goff’s long-term deal on the books, they have explored the possibilities with Stafford.”
And now that possibility is a reality, with Stafford looking to lead the Rams back to the Super Bowl.